


Drive in (to My Heart)

by LouiseLouise



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Betaed, Feelings Realization, Fluff, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Slice of Life, mention of Ana Flores as past relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:14:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29938116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LouiseLouise/pseuds/LouiseLouise
Summary: Eddie’s plans have been cancelled, and maybe it’s for the best.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 204





	Drive in (to My Heart)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Marcia Elena (marciaelena)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/marciaelena/gifts).



> Wishing the happiest birthday to the formidable [marciaelena](https://archiveofourown.org/users/marciaelena), you deserve all the nice things ❤️
> 
> This was inspired by the prompt "Drive in Movies" from [this list](https://deity-prompts.tumblr.com/post/644943089486659584/welcome-to-the-30-day-march-writing-challenge), thank you [Holly](https://archiveofourown.org/users/benjaminrussell) and [Jen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jecari) for guiding me towards it!
> 
> Thank you to [marciaelena](https://archiveofourown.org/users/marciaelena) and the lovely [evanbuckos](https://evanbuckos.tumblr.com/) for the beta for! All remaining mistakes are mine, English is not my first language.

“Hey,” Eddie says, walking into the locker room. It’s been an exhausting shift, but he’s not looking forward to going home and having to face the harsh fact that his plans for the night have been cancelled. He still picks up his clothes from his locker and starts changing.

“Hey.” Buck lifts his head from where he’s sitting on the bench, smiling like the past twenty four hours never happened and he just woke up fully rested on a Sunday morning, and Eddie hates him just a little for it. “So, what movie are you two lovebirds going to see tonight?”

Of course Buck remembers Eddie’s plans. “No movie, we’re not going.”

“What happened, she couldn’t come? Wait, do teachers have emergencies like doctors and all?”

Eddie sighs, fidgeting with the cuffs of his shirt, trying to figure out how to not look as pathetic as he feels. “No, no, it’s just-- we’re not-- we weren’t working, that’s all.”

“Oh shit, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Eddie shrugs. It’s not really okay, it’s one more disappointment to add to his list. “I don’t think I was ready, anyway.”

“Or she just wasn’t the right person for you.”

“Maybe. I don’t know. It felt awkward at first, but I figured it was because I hadn’t been on a date since… well, since Shannon, and I was just rusty. But it stayed awkward, every date, whatever we did. Awkward.”

“It’s only been a month, don’t you think maybe you need more time?”

“Three weeks,” Eddie corrects, realizing that he’s making it worse, like he didn’t even try to make it work. He did, though, he tried his best to relax and enjoy Ana’s company, see if they could build something together. But the more they tried, the less they both seemed to look forward to seeing each other. 

“Three weeks! That’s barely a relationship. What were you expecting?” 

Buck may be right, but Eddie can’t shake the feeling that it just didn’t feel right with Ana, with neither one of them to blame. That trying more would’ve only hurt them more.

“I don’t know, easy conversations? Shared interests? Not dreading the silence? Like, you and me, we’re comfortable with silence, right? And we always have something to say. Okay, mostly you, maybe, but we don’t get stuck with small talk, and we don’t need alcohol to loosen up.”

Buck smiles and closes his locker, ready to leave the firehouse. “Eddie, you can’t compare a three week relationship with a three year friendship. Have you forgotten how we started, you and I?”

Eddie chuckles, thinking back on the image of this tall unfriendly guy trying to scare him off in his first week. “Yeah. You were a jerk.”

“Hey, I was insecure, and feeling lost with Abby being gone but not really gone, you know?” 

Eddie nods and grabs his bag, heading towards the parking lot with Buck walking next to him.

“But yes,” Buck continues, “I was a jerk, I admit. Though if I remember correctly it didn’t last.”

“If you were insecure, imagine how I felt. A new job, being the new guy, moving to a new city with my kid and thinking I’d have to do it all on my own.”

“Not saying we should be thankful for that grenade, but... Got us real close,” Buck says, laughing. 

“Maybe I should’ve tried that with Ana.”

Buck smiles, but Eddie knows his friend can see through his light tone and attempts at humour. 

“Hey, you already have the tickets for the drive-in, right?” Buck asks, hand on the Jeep’s door. “I know I’m not your first choice to go with, but it could be fun.”

Eddie nods. Their usual movie night, but under the stars? It doesn’t sound like the worst idea after all.

“I’ve never been to a drive-in movie night, actually,” Buck says

“Really? No high school sweetheart you tried to woo in your pick-up truck?”

“Nope,” Buck says. “Just regular movies and terrible popcorn on my own. Or with Maddie, before she left. And I was more a bike kind of guy,” he adds with a grin.

“We need to fix this, then. At least get you some decent popcorn.”

“It’s a date, then.” 

Buck winks, and Eddie’s already forgotten about the cancelled plans and the exhausting shift.

It’s always easy to make plans with Buck. No second guessing everything, no awkwardness. There’s no one else Eddie would rather be spending the evening with, and this thought is enough to make something blossom in his heart. Something soft, that was there before but quiet, unnoticed. 

Something that whispers about how far they’ve come since that first shift, and makes him wonder if maybe their journey has even more in store for them. Hopefully it has.

And maybe Buck wasn’t his first choice tonight, but Eddie’s starting to realize that he might be the right choice, anyway. For the night, and forever.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! You can find it on tumblr [there](https://theladyandthewolves.tumblr.com/post/645205442669232128/drive-in-to-my-heart).
> 
> Kudos, emoji and comments are treasures ♥


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